LAVENDER, Lavandula, a genus of plants of the natural order labiatte, having the stamens and style included within the tube of the corolla, the corolla two-lipped, the upper lip bilk!, the lower trifid.—The COMMON LAVENDER, or NARROW-LEAVED LAV ENDER (L. vera or L. angustifolia), grows wild on stony mountains and hills in the s. of Europe. and in more northern regions is very generally cultivated in gardens. It has a delightful aromatic fragrance, and an aromatic bitter taste, and contains a great quantPy of a volatile oil, oil of lavender. The whole plant possesses stimulant properties, and is used in medicine, but particularly the spikes of the flowers, as a tonic, stomachic, ner vous stimulant, etc. Lavender flowers are often put into wardrobes te keep away moths. They are much used in perfumery. Oil of lavender is procured by distillation of laven der flowers with water. It requires 70 lbs. of flowers to yield 1 lb. of oil. It is rather
lighter than water, pale yellow, very fluid, and very fragrant. Spirit of lavender is made by distilling lavender flowers with rectified spirit ; lavender water, one of the most popular of all perfumes, by dissolving oil of lavender with smaller quantities of other volatile oils in rectified spirit. Lavender is extensively cultivated for its flowers in some places near London, and particularly at Mitcham in Surrey, where more than 200 acres are occupied by it, the light and sandy soil being especially suitable to it-BROAD-LEAVED LAVENDER (L. latifolut or L. spiea) is also a native of the s. of Europe, but is more ten der than common lavender. It is also less fragrant, and the oil which it yields is called oil of spike, and sometimes foreign oil of lavender. This oil is used by painters on por celain, and iu the preparation of varnishes.